


Welcome Home, Theseus

by kittyrot



Category: Minecraft (Video Game), Video Blogging RPF
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Angst and Feels, Angst and Tragedy, Betrayal, Character Death, Emotional Hurt, Gen, Heavy Angst, Hurt No Comfort, Implied/Referenced Character Death, Panic Attacks, Post-Manberg-Pogtopia War on Dream Team SMP (Video Blogging RPF), War
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-03
Updated: 2021-01-22
Packaged: 2021-03-09 21:41:46
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 7
Words: 13,108
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27853590
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kittyrot/pseuds/kittyrot
Summary: Tommy was always so selfish, but Technoblade was always there
Relationships: Dave | Technoblade & TommyInnit, Toby Smith | Tubbo & TommyInnit
Comments: 42
Kudos: 447





	1. Leaving

**Author's Note:**

> Hi! Back with more angst >:D  
> I don't remember where I got this idea, but I do know my friend's are tired of me throwing sad plot lines at them.  
> Updates on this will be infrequent, but I'll try to get them out as fast as possible.  
> This fic is going to be upsetting, and there will be violence and death, so please don't read if that bothers you.

Tommy knew something was changing. Tubbo cared about L’Manburg, New L’Manburg, and Tommy did too, but he couldn’t stay. He couldn’t look at the new flag without thinking of Wilbur. The gold heart that sat proudly against the background of blue, white, and red mocked him. The lanterns that peaked at him from outside his windows made his stomach feel funny. It was too bright for him to feel so dull.

Tommy couldn’t stay, he knew that. He was acting out, damaging the reputation Tubbo had worked so hard to build. He was pulling other people down with him. Good people like Ranboo who didn’t deserve to be ruined before they even got a chance just because Tommy was upset. Tommy wanted to love New L’Manburg, but everything reminded him of what he used to have. Wilbur was dead, Techno was wanted, and Phil had his own business to worry about without his youngest son causing him problems. Tubbo was trying to be patient with him, Tommy knew, but Tubbo had to focus on being a president now. He didn’t have time for Tommy’s chaos anymore, he had a country to lead.

That’s why Tommy found himself packing his bags one foggy night. The moon was full and it lit the sky in bright white light. Tommy was the only house with a torch lit. Every logical person would be asleep at this time, it was nearly dawn. He hadn’t told anyone he was leaving, not even Phil. His goal was to find Technoblade and makeup with his eldest brother, he needed him now more than ever, with Wilbur gone. He didn’t even know if Techno was aware of what happened to his brother.

Tommy longed for childhood when he would watch Techno and Wilbur play in the garden as he and Phil made lunch in the kitchen. He would always add a little too much tomato to Wilbur’s sandwich, despite his older brother hating the taste of it. Wilbur would always pull it off with a grimace and throw it at Tommy’s head. Phil had quit trying to stop him after a while, it became a tradition until he was finally old enough to play swords.

He smiled at the memory as he stuffed his few valuables into a bag. He was so focused on finding his last golden apple, probably buried deep in some random barrel, that he didn’t even hear his door creaking open.

“Tommy?” came a voice from behind him. Tommy slammed the chest closed and spun around, heart racing.

“Tubbo! Uh, what are you doing here so late?” he stuttered out. He didn’t know why he was so afraid, he wasn’t doing anything wrong by leaving. His being gone was what Dream wanted. It would make it easier for Tubbo. He wasn’t going to get in trouble, but Tubbo catching him would just make leaving more painful.

“I was going on a walk and saw your lights were on, so I thought I’d stop by.” Tommy sighed. Spoken like a true president. He went to respond, but Tubbo wasn’t finished. “Is everything okay, man?” Tommy’s voice caught in his throat and he couldn’t respond for a second. Tubbo’s tone was soft, and it reminded him of how it used to be when they could be carefree, enjoying each other's presence while they messed around.

Tommy knew he put Tubbo through a lot. He was always starting conflict and dragging his best friend along. Tubbo didn’t deserve to have everything ruined by Tommy again.

He had been so patient for so long, spying for him, fighting with him, and now he just wanted to take care of the nation he loved. A soft bell chimed in the distance to signal the breaking of dawn. Tommy would have to leave soon if he wanted to try and find Technoblade before the next nightfall. He sighed and tightened the straps of his bag over his shoulders.

Looking Tubbo in the eyes, he whispered.

“I’m leaving the country, Mr. President.”

Tubbo didn’t show any physical reaction to what Tommy said, but his eyes grew hard.

“After everything I did to keep you here?” He looked around the house, the empty chests and stripped bed stood out like a bright light in a dark cave. Tommy only had one torch burning in the room, just enough to see by and keep the mobs away. Tubbo wouldn’t catch his eye as he walked over to the jukebox. “What about your discs?” His hand brushed against the corner as he looked down at the disc slot, hand resting over it.

Tommy clenched his jaw, leaving while Skeppy and Bad still had his disc was a hard decision he had to make.

“I’ll come back for my discs. This isn’t over, Tubbo. I just can’t be here anymore.”  
Tubbo’s resolve cracked slightly as he sucked in a sharp breath. He finally turned to meet Tommy’s eyes.

“What about Phil? Are you going to make him lose his last son?” He held his eyes, the low lighting making his eyes glint dangerously.

Tommy took a step back. “I’m not his last son. He still has you, Tubbo.” Tommy looked out the window to Phil’s house beside him. His windows were dark, but he knew his father would be waking up soon. “Besides, he won’t be losing me.”

Tubbo looked away. They sat in a heavy silence before he cleared his throat and looked back at Tommy.

“You know you’ll be wanted. You’ll never be able to step foot in L’Manburg again.”

His voice was almost angry, and Tommy’s heart clenched. He already knew all of this, but it hurt to hear his Tubbo say it so matter-of-factly.

Tommy glanced out the window again. He had to go, the sun was climbing, and he wouldn’t be able to handle the cold and the mobs that were waiting for him after nightfall.

“I know, Tubbo. But you’ll finally get the peace you wanted. It’ll be better for you.” He turned away and grabbed the door handle.

“You’re so selfish, Tommy,” Tubbo said from behind. Tommy froze but didn’t turn. “You only care about yourself.” Tommy heard shuffling as Tubbo stood straighter behind him. “I want you gone by the time the sun breaks over the tower, you’re no longer a citizen of this country.”

Tommy nodded, not trusting his voice at the moment. He pulled open the door and stepped out, pausing at the threshold before he pushed it shut for good.

“Goodbye, Tubbo. I’ll never forget you.” He let a single tear fall as he shut the door on his friend and left his home for the last time.


	2. Memories

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The snow biomes were dangerous at night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am back.  
> Sorry, this update took a little longer than I wanted to write, but it's twice as long as my average chapter length, so I hope you all don't mind *too* much. 
> 
> Enough rambling, here's Chapter Two. 
> 
> (Slight blood mention at the end)

Tommy walked out of L’Manburg silently as the sun rose. He didn’t want anyone else to see him walking out, he couldn’t handle the looks. He got to the hole in the obsidian wall before he heard a noise from behind him. He whipped around, sword in hand as he was ready to throw one last hit in before he left forever. 

Ghostbur stood behind him, blue dye in his hand and a confused look on his face. 

“Where are you going?” He asked, the soft voice he had taken on after his death almost taunted Tommy. It was still hard for him to realize that Wilbur was dead. His brother being gone didn’t feel real. Tommy looked at Ghostbur, then looked up at the wall around the country before gesturing for his brother to follow. They crouched through the hole and walked around the outside. Tommy equipped the little bit of armour he had and let his body slide down the outside of the wall. Wilbur followed and soon they were sitting side by side against the obsidian as the sun rose higher into the sky. 

“I’m going to find Technoblade. I’m no longer allowed inside the walls of L’Manburg, and I don’t want to be here when Dream decides he wants to do more to me.”

“Oh, I love Technoblade. Can I come with you, Tommy?” Ghostbur asked. He sounded so genuine that Tommy had to think about his answer for a moment. On one hand, he really wanted someone with him. Ranboo told him that he would leave with Tommy if he were exiled, but Ranboo had just gotten here, and Tommy didn’t think it would be fair to force him to leave whenever he had just gotten settled. If Wilbur came along, Tommy would have his brother with him, but he would never _really_ be with him. Just another whisper of his past following him around. 

He wasn’t sure how Technoblade would react to him though, and Wilbur may know where he was, so Tommy sighed in defeat and nodded his head. Ghostbur smiled brightly putting his dye away. 

“C’mon, Tommy! We’re going on holiday!” Tommy smiled to himself at that. Ghostbur may have not been Wilbur anymore, but he was still his brother where it counted. He hopped up from where he was sitting next to Tommy and walked a few steps forward. Did he walk? Tommy honestly couldn’t tell. His steps made noise, but they created no indentation in the grass and left no prints. Tommy shook his head, he could worry about that later.

Ghostbur held his foggy hand out, and Tommy took it as an invitation to stand, so he did. It was much less enthusiastic than his brother, but he thought again as he groaned with the effort of getting off the ground, that they needed to leave.

“Wilbur,” Tommy started. The ghost turned to look at him, still walking forward. “What do you remember about Technoblade?”

“Oh! I remember lots about Technoblade! Most of it from our childhood together.” He put his hands in his back pockets, Tommy followed behind silently.

“I remember us playing swords in the garden, you weren’t allowed at first, since you were so little, but you would always throw food at me when we came in for lunch.” He smiled. 

“I also remember the first night he snuck away, he came home with an arrow in his arm and Phil properly told him off for hours. He told me all about it the night after. I sat on his bed and we talked until early morning when you barged in and demanded to be included.” Tommy let out his own smile at that, he remembered that memory. He was so scared for Techno, but Phil was more worried about scolding him than the arrow wound in his arm. He healed within hours, but it was the first injury Tommy had ever seen up close. 

“I remember that. It was scary.” He said, glancing over at the ghost. 

“Awe, was little Tommy scared for his big brother?” Ghostbur taunted. Tommy scoffed and went to shove him lightly, before remembering he couldn’t touch him. His mood dampened slightly. 

“Of course I was worried, I was 7.” Tommy responded, dejected. Ghostbur didn't react to Tommy’s change in tone, but he did start talking again. 

“There was also that one time when Techno snagged one of Phil’s elytras and jumped from the treehouse. He flew pretty well, it was the landing that tripped him up. Somehow Dad didn’t get mad when he found out, just sighed and bandaged Tech’s leg up. He spent the rest of the day trying to teach us how it worked. He even let you try it!” Wilbur bounced as he walked when he said the last bit. Tommy did remember learning the elytra. Phil didn’t let him fly up very high, so he just kinda glided down from the middle step on the treehouse ladder, but it was a fun memory nonetheless. Elytra were banned where they lived now, so Tommy had never flown with it again. 

“Oh! There was also the time I caught Techno trying to bake a cake for your birthday in the middle of the night. He was making an absolute mess and thought I was going to make fun of him, but we pulled it off together. I think it was your 10th birthday.” Tommy finally let out a laugh at that. He remembered that birthday well. Techno and Wilbur had barged into his room at 7 am and dragged him out of bed by his ankles. They threw him into the barn that'd been decorated with a bunch of red streamers and lanterns and came back in with Phil and a lopsided birthday cake. Tommy immediately started throwing punches, yelling at them that they had scared him, but it was a good birthday. He had no clue when the cake was made until now. 

“I remember the time we caught you dancing around in your room.” Tommy gritted his teeth, he didn’t like this story. Wilbur had gifted him his old jacket whenever he outgrew it, and Tommy had pretended he hated it. In reality, it was Tommy’s favorite jacket up until he also outgrew it. It always reminded him of his brother when one of them was away from home, and even now he still had it, folded up small in the bottom of his bag. 

“We thought you hated that jacket, but after hearing music coming from your room one night we snuck in to see you dancing around wearing it. It was really funny.” Wilbur laughed. This is why Tommy didn’t like the memory. It probably seemed funny to Techno and Wilbur, but they had teased him so much for it. Tommy spent the next night in bed with Phil, crying to his dad about how his brothers were so mean to him. It was a sensitive memory to Tommy, and it was one he didn’t need to be teased over again, especially not in his current state of emotions. 

“Wilbur, I don’t like this story, try another one.” Tommy said, trying his best to not show his emotions. His brother did stop telling the story, turning to Tommy with a smile on his face. 

“Awe, are you embarrassed? That’s so cute, Tommy.” Ghostbur cooed. Normally, Tommy would’ve just quipped back, but he wasn’t really in the mood for friendly banter this time. 

“Not now, Wil. I’m not in the mood to be teased anymore.” He turned his head away from his brother, adjusting his bag on his shoulders and standing up straighter. 

“You _are_ embarrassed! Little Tommy doesn’t want his big brother to know he enjoyed his gifts.” He continued to taunt. Tommy stopped walking. 

“You know what, Wilbur?” He asked, anger seeping into his tone. His ghostly brother turned around. 

“I don’t need you. I don’t need anyone. Not Tubbo, not Technoblade, not even Phil. I’m better off on my own. Don’t follow me.” He snarled, now fully angry. He turned on his heel and ran off. 

The sun was almost completely hidden by the horizon at this point, and Tommy knew that soon the mobs would be out, but he didn’t care. He was angry at himself for allowing Ghostbur’s storytelling to upset him so much, and he was angry he had stormed off. He had barely any armour and no weapons. He thought about turning around and trying to find his brother again, but his pride kept him stubbornly running through the grass, not exactly knowing where he was going. 

He had reached snow by the time the sun was gone. Tommy shivered and pulled his bag closer to his body. He knew that Techno’s new house was somewhere in the snow, he had seen the clothes Phil had worn when he went off to visit his eldest son, but that was all Tommy knew. There could be a dozen snow biomes Techno was located, and he had no idea if he was even going in the right direction. Shaking icy sludge off his ragged sneakers, he kept walking. 

Tommy jumped when he heard a zombie growl from behind him. He picked up the pace to get away before it trained its sights on him. He was hungry, but he had already gone through the small amount of food he had brought with him. The only signs of life were the few rabbits that hopped along the snowy hills. 

With no weapons, Tommy was defenseless, only having his fists and a stick or two to use to defend himself. He knew the snow biomes were dangerous, especially at night. There was always the possibility of a deep hole, hidden by the snow piles. Or he could fall into a ravine. There were also the mobs; spiders, zombies, skeletons, creepers, and the strays. 

The strays and the skeletons were his biggest concern. He could always dodge away from the zombies and spiders, and he was fast enough to get away from the creepers before they blew up, but arrows hit hard. The strays arrows slowed him, making avoiding all the other mobs twice as hard, and Tommy knew that if he got snagged with one of those arrows he was doomed. 

He shivered again and kept running, he didn’t have time to slow down. He was desperately searching for any sign of life or torches. The moon wasn’t even at its peak, and the mobs still swarmed. Tommy had no clue if Ghostbur was even still out here, he could’ve headed back to L’Manburg or already made it to Techno for all he knew. 

Tommy felt an arrow wiz past his body, stray or skeleton he didn’t know, and he didn’t stop to check. He turned his body to run away from the mob ahead of him when he felt another arrow fly past him, this time it nicked his arm. He felt the sting as the arrowhead ripped his skin open, and his arm went cold. 

He cursed to himself as he realized it was, in fact, a strays arrow that caught him. He felt his body get colder and sluggish as thick blood ran down his arm. He tried to keep going, but it got increasingly difficult to move as the arrow's poison ran through his blood. The snow behind him was spattered with his blood and mobs moved in closer. 

Tommy couldn’t feel the arm that had gotten hit at all, and he was beginning to lose the feeling in his legs as well. It was just cold and heavy, and when he thought it couldn’t get much worse, a new arrow caught him. He barely felt the pain of the skeleton's arrow piercing into his calf, but he stumbled and fell into the snow regardless. The original wound on his arm felt like it was on fire, and the wet snow seeped into his clothes, chilling him even more than he already was. 

Tommy didn’t know what to do, there were mobs surrounding him, getting closer with every step, and he couldn’t move. He grit his teeth, closed his eyes, and let himself succumb to the cold. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope the tiny amount of fluff was enough to satisfy you. Don't get used to it. Anyways, please leave a kudos and comment on this if you enjoyed it. (I respond to all of the comments ;)) It really makes my day, you don't have to, though. Look forward to seeing you next chapter. :) It'll be more light-hearted.


	3. Warm

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Brotherly Bonding.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Cringe :) Even if you don't celebrate the holiday, here's a gift. I know it's kind of short, and I know it takes me a really long time to get chapters out but I'm working every day to get better at my writers' block and procrastination. I hope you guys like the full fluffy chapter. The plot resumes next update :) I'm doing my best to get updates out *about* every week.  
> (Mild editing on Dec 26th)

Tommy wasn’t expecting to wake up, much less waking up warm and comfortable. His arm still felt heavy, but he wasn’t in much pain anymore. He looked around in confusion. There was a heavy blanket thrown over him, and his arm was wrapped in a bandage. He also had a bandage he could feel on his leg and a few more plasters all over his body. The room was bathed in warm light, and Tommy looked over to the source. His body stiffened when he saw a person sitting in front of the torch. 

Technoblade was sitting on a pillow, hunched over in the light wrapping a strap of leather around the hilt of his sword. Tommy swallowed as his eldest brother turned around and looked at him. Techno grunted as he stood up, and the torchlight bounced off the walls in a way that made him look twice as scary as normal. 

Tommy didn’t know why he was nervous, this was just his brother. They grew up together and he knew that Techno wouldn’t hurt him if he had no reason to, but he couldn’t help but remember L’manburg. Techno placing the final head on the Withers, the sound of his voice echoing in his ears as they rained fire on the place he had once called home. He almost flinched back as his brother kneeled by his side, but he managed to resist the urge. He felt a calloused hand rest on his forehead as Techno sighed. 

“Your fever has gone down. You were lucky that Ghostbur found me before the mobs got you too bad. Your only major wounds were the gash on your arm and a bite to the leg.” He turned back around, bending over and grabbing something from beside the bed Tommy was on. He held out a small bucket filled with milk, gesturing for Tommy to grab it. “Here. This should get rid of the last effects of the slowness arrow you got caught with. Drink it.” 

Tommy struggled into a sitting position, the strain of moving tugged at his healing skin and he winced, but he managed to grab the milk and drink it. Almost immediately he started to feel better. His arm was still sore but his vision cleared and he felt lighter. Techno had turned from him again, going back to working on his weapons. 

“Don’t you have a Regen Pot or something, my arm feels like shit.” Techno didn’t look up or pause working on his tools, but he scoffed. 

“You need ghast tears for Regen Pots, I’ve been too busy takin' care of you to make any Nether trips recently. You’ll be fine, heal like a big boy.” 

“You’d think the mighty Technoblade would have some ghast tears stashed somewhere, you _are_ kind of wanted.” Tommy slumped back down on the bed. His brother didn’t respond, but Tommy didn’t really mind. He looked around the room, noticing the stone floors and half walls. There was a ladder leading up, along with some closed off mobs and a cow. Tommy knew Techno had gotten the mobs in October. They showed up around the SMP during Halloween, but the cow was new. 

“You couldn’t even give me a nice room to stay in? I have to share with a cow?” 

Techno grunted. 

“Don’t forget about the mobs, they have feelin's too, you know.” He nodded his head over to them. Tommy laughed a little at that. He stared up at the ceiling, the sound of Techno fussing with him weapons oddly comforting. Despite the room not being the prettiest, it was warm and he felt his eyelids grow heavy. His blanket was soft, and he was still exhausted. He glanced over at Techno one more time, his brother not focusing on him at the moment. He let out a deep sigh and let his eyes fall closed. He could deal with everything else later, he needed a little bit more sleep. 

* * *

The next time he woke up, it was to Techno shaking his shoulder. 

“Alright, Sleepin' Beauty. If you can walk you’re helpin' me with the chores. I have things to do. I’ve gotten behind takin' care of you.” He shook him again, and Tommy rolled over, groggy. His arm was barely sore anymore, and his leg felt fine. He didn’t want to get up and work with Techno, but he knew that his brother would just keep badgering him until he did. He groaned and pushed the blanket off his legs. The air outside was colder than under the cloth, but it wasn’t nearly as bad as he expected. When Tommy shivered, Techno chuckled under his breath.

“It’s colder outside, don’t get comfortable.” He pulled himself up on the ladder once Tommy was fully out of bed. “Come on, I have some old clothes you can wear, you’ll freeze to death in what you’re wearin' now.”

Tommy mumbled under his breath, but clambered up the ladder after his brother, standing awkwardly as clothes were pushed into his arms. 

“Change and meet me outside. I’ll be with Carl.” He turned on his heel, heading down and out, leaving Tommy alone in his room. He had the urge to snoop, but the cold was starting to bite at his hands in the room with no furnace. The clothes were dropped to the floor as he tugged off his now ragged shirt. Techno’s shirt was big on him, but it fit well enough. He also swapped his thin pants with the heavy black ones that Techno provided him. These fit surprisingly well, and he wondered if they were from when his brother was younger. He tugged on gloves, and finally the cloak he was given. He gave a little twirl before glancing over to the window to try and catch his reflection. He definitely looked royal. It didn’t feel right, him looking so fancy, but it was significantly warmer than his other clothes so he accepted it. Once he was comfortable in the way everything fit, he cracked his knuckles and headed down the ladder. 

Techno was still standing next to Carl, running a brush along his back. 

"Took you long enough. Come on, I need to do my daily chores. You can help me tend to the bees.” He patted Carl on the side, adjusting the armour that was on him as he walked through the gate. He straightened his own cloak and turned to the large bee house beside them. Tommy smiled as he looked into the windows to see the little creatures buzzing around, pollinating flowers and working hard to make honey. He thought of Tubbo, running around like a working bee, always trying to make everyone happy. His heart ached and he quickly shook his head, glancing over to Techno. 

“Alright, I like to freshen up their flowers every once in a while, Phil said it changes the way the honey tastes.” He muttered under his breath. “I just think he likes to see me struggle to plant things.” Technoblade cleared his throat and looked over to Tommy, gesturing for him. “You can help with that. There are tulips in the chest, just crawl in and dig up the original flowers. I need to replace the honey trays.” He turned back around, walking around to the back of the bee house. He slung his cape off, pulled the gloves off and rolled up his sleeves. 

Tommy stood still for a second. Technoblade wanted _him_ to garden. He let out a genuine laugh before Techno poked his head around the house, hands holding a bee frame dripping honey. Somehow, even like this, his eldest brother still managed to look scary. Tommy’s laugh fizzled out and he sighed and got to work. It ended up taking about an hour with both of them working. They didn’t talk much, it was mostly just Tommy complaining and Techno telling him to shut up. 

They were both dirty after they finished, but Techno didn’t seem to care. 

“Technoblade. I am covered in mud.” Tommy wined, looking around for somewhere to wipe his messy hands. Techno rolled his eyes and wiped his own hands across his thighs, he then pulled his gloves back on and gestured for Tommy to do the same. After a moment, Tommy shrugged and followed along, pulling gloves over his numb fingers. It really was much colder out here than it was inside, and not even the physical exertion could keep out the chill from the snow. He wasn’t sure how Technoblade could handle the chill. They stepped back and looked at the bee house in full again. The flowers surprisingly didn’t look all that bad, and Tommy felt a surge of pride. 

“Alright. I need to check on the turtles now. You can meet Toby.” Techno secured the door to the bee house and locked the chest sitting outside it. 

“Toby? Who the fuck is Toby?” He whips his head to look over at his brother, incredulous. Techno just laughs. A full, real laugh as he walked away from his confused brother.


	4. Snow

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> He's gonna get his Tubbo back

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the super late chapter, I got distracted playing Genshin Impact for 3 days, speedran a DNF New Years Kiss oneshot, and then knitted half a blanket because I can't focus on one thing! No more fluff for you guys! The rest of this fic is really fucking painful. 
> 
> Enjoy :3

Much to Tommy’s dismay, finishing Techno’s chores took the rest of the day. It was well into dark whenever his brother finally decided they were done. Even though his arm and leg were healed in the technical sense, they still ached after the long day. Once they finally got inside the warm house, Tommy immediately stripped off his dirty and sweat-soaked clothes. He didn’t know how he had sweat so much, it was below freezing almost all day, but he was definitely damp, be it from the snow or his exertion. Techno let a smile crack as he watched Tommy shimmy out of the dirty clothes. He threw a pile of cloth at him and placed a golden apple on top.   
  
“Here, I got these from Phil, they should fit you better than my old stuff.” He jerked his head at the clothes and turned to climb up the ladder into his bedroom for the night. “Good work today, Theseus. I appreciate the help.” 

Tommy furrowed his eyebrows. “My name isn’t Theseus, Technoblade. That stupid story has infected your brain I think.” 

“Whatever you say, Theseus.” He pulled himself up onto the top floor of the house and stuck his head out of the gap. “Goodnight, Tommy.” Then he was gone. 

Tommy sighed and looked around the room. Thankfully it was still warm, the furnace in the corner keeping the chill out. Technoblade didn’t have much in his house, mostly just chests. He thought about what happened the night before, the feel of the strays jagged arrow slicing into his skin, the bite of the snow as he sunk to the ground, closing his eyes for what he thought was the last time. Techno had said that Ghostbur found him, but Tommy wasn’t sure how. He had definitely run a good distance from his brother, and the snow would’ve obscured his tracks. 

Maybe Ghostbur had followed him from the minute that he left. 

Tommy shook his head, he’d ask Technoblade in the morning. He was exhausted, the strain of the night before and all the work today had really taken all his energy. He looked down at the pile of clothes, the golden apple glinting in the torchlight. He changed quickly, not wanting to give the cold anymore of a chance to seep into his bruising skin. Pushing his hair out of his eyes, he sat down on the top of a chest and held the golden apple in his hands. 

It was silent this far out into the wilderness. All he could hear was the slight crackle from the furnace and Technoblade’s snoring. Even the sound of the mobs outside was gone. 

Tommy thought about Tubbo too. The bees today had hit him weirdly hard, digging up a lot of emotions. He felt guilty, though he’d never admit that aloud. The discs were important to him, but Tubbo would always be the biggest thing he cared about, and he had ruined it all. Looking back, Tubbo was obviously so stressed and anxious, stretching himself thin doing his best to keep Tommy safe, and he went and threw it all away in a moment of blind anger and defiance. He didn’t want to conform to Dream’s wishes, of course, he didn’t, he was way too prideful for that. The look on Tubbo’s face whenever Tommy said he was leaving haunted him. He could read his best friend like a book, and Tommy knew that the pain and betrayal in Tubbo’s eyes were real. It hurt him more than his arm, and he felt sick to his stomach. 

Why had he done that? Why did he need to do that? He easily could’ve just gone along with whatever was asked of him, kept his home and his best friend, but instead, he wanted to prove a point. The nausea was strong, and he couldn’t breathe. He screwed his eyes shut, balling his fists into the fur lining of the cloak Technoblade had given him. His hands were numb and he couldn’t control their shaking. He tried to take a deep breath but it hurt, and he ended up just choking on his own spit. 

Tommy shook his head violently, flexing his fingers into the soft fur. He needed to calm down. Tears streamed down his face. The urge to do something overcame him, and he desperately wanted to stab something, anything, to just calm his racing mind. Angry, he wiped the tears off his face and blinked hard. This was getting him nowhere. He was so mad at himself, but what was done was done. He needed to tell Techno about everything tomorrow, but for now, he was going to sleep. He took one more breath and climbed down the stairs. The room didn’t look any more exciting than it did that morning, and Tommy groaned. He thumped down on the bed and took a shaky breath. At least it was warm, he supposed. Better than having to spend his nights trying to find shelter away from the mobs and elements. He let his body fall back, his head thumping into the too firm mattress of whatever spare bed Techno managed to find. The pumpkin-headed pigman grumbled, and the clinking bones from the skeleton were soft, muffled by the barrier of glass and stone. His eyes were heavy, and the soreness from earlier came back full force. He closed them, sighing when his back popped back into place and the burn behind his eyes faded. Tommy let himself relax for the first time since Wilbur died, and it was a blessed feeling. The tension in his shoulders had become so bad he wasn’t sure he could ever work it out, but this was a nice start. He stretched out and his foot touched something. He opened his eyes as little as he could, and realized it was the golden apple Techno had given him earlier. Part of him wanted to save it for when it was needed, but there was no doubt Techno had more of them. He thought about his own golden apples, probably long gone somewhere in the snow. He sat up slowly, the movement tugged at his muscles, but he managed to snag the apple and thump back down. 

The apple shined in the light, and Tommy shrugged, taking a bite. It was crisp, the outer layer cracking like a candied apple, and it’s sweetness filled his mouth. He immediately felt even better, the ache in his muscles faded into unawareness and he sighed blissfully. His exhaustion wasn’t affected though, and it was getting increasingly more difficult to keep his eyes open, so he finally gave in and drifted into unconsciousness. 

* * *

Surprisingly, Techno didn’t wake him up the next morning, and he woke up warm. The furnace was on and the house was silent. He pushed the blanket off and stood up, stretching. He felt much better after sleeping through the night, and although his arm was still sore, it was easy to ignore. He looked around before finding the cloak and pulled it on over his body. He noticed that the clothes from yesterday were gone from the floor, so he assumed Techno must have come in earlier and gotten them. He climbed the ladder into the main part of the house, where there was no Technoblade. 

Tommy assumed that he must have been out, probably doing more chores. He tugged on his borrowed boots and braced the snow outside. 

He wasn’t sure what to expect when he opened the door, but Technoblade and Ghostbur sitting outside peacefully talking wasn’t it. They were both sitting on the bottom step, Ghostbur’s translucent legs pulled up to his chest, gesturing with his hands, telling Techno some story. Techno immediately turned around as soon as Tommy opened the door, his glasses sliding off his nose.

“Tommy, good mornin'.” He nodded. Tommy nodded back. 

“Good morning, Technoblade. Ghostbur?” He looked over at his Ghostly brother. 

“Tommy!” Ghostbur hopped up from his seat and glided over to Tommy, his non-corporeal hands floating all over his face. “You’re okay!” 

“I told you he was,” Technoblade grumbled from below them. 

“I was so worried! I barely made it to Technoblade to tell him where you were! I can’t be in the snow for long or else I’ll melt, thankfully Techno knew exactly where you were.” He exclaimed in the happy, bright way that Ghostbur always did. Tommy nodded slowly, that explains how he got there. He didn’t know how he didn’t notice that Ghostbur was following him, but his brother was pretty silent, both in life and death so it seemed. Ghostbur continued to babble on to both him and Techno, but Tommy had stopped paying attention. Seeing Ghostbur had reminded him why he went to search for Techno in the first place. 

“Technoblade.” He interrupted Ghostbur. Techno looked up at him, pushing his glasses back up his nose. 

“Yes, Theseus?” 

“Oh for the lo-” Tommy cut himself off and took a breath. “Whatever, Technoblade. I don’t have time for this. I need to talk to you, it’s important.” 

Techno huffed. “Now look who's bein' bossy.” He stood up anyway and walked up the stairs, brushing past Ghostbur and Tommy. He walked inside and held the door open.  
“Come on. If we’re goin' to talk, we're goin' to do it inside. There’s no use in standin' out in the cold.”

* * *

“So,” Techno leaned forward on his knees, pushing his slipping glasses up once again. “Tubbo isn’t a good president, and you left because Dream threatened to exile you if you didn’t follow his rules?” 

“Tubbo isn’t a bad president, that’s not what I’m saying. I’m just saying that Dream has too much influence over him.” He looked around the room nervously. “Tubbo doesn’t even have the chance to make his own decisions as President, Dream is just pulling the strings and he doesn’t even realize it. I left because I wanted it to be easier for Tubbo, but I also refused to let Dream have his way and kick me out on his own.” 

Ghostbur raised his hand.

“Whenever I went back to L’Manburg after you found Tommy, Technoblade,” He gestured wildly with his hands. “Dream was there. He told me to go take a walk in the snow, clear my head.” 

Techno cocked his head. “Did Dream know that you melt with moisture?” 

Ghostbur nodded. 

“So Dream tried to kill you,” Tommy spoke. Ghostbur looked confused. 

“I don’t know if he tried to kill me. Maybe he just forgot. Either way, I made it here this morning, so it turned out alright.” Tommy shook his head 

“That’s not the point, Wilbur.” 

Just as Ghostbur was about to speak again, Techno interrupted.

“I get the idea. Why are you tellin' me this, Tommy?” 

“I want your help to overthrow Dream. The government of L’Manburg, whatever.” He looked down at his feet, threading his fingers together. “I just want my Tubbo back.”

Technoblade was silent for a moment, and Tommy just got more nervous. Technoblade would never turn down overthrowing a corrupt government, right? The seconds felt like minutes before Techno nodded. 

“Alright, Tommy. I’ll help you.” He leaned back in his chair. Tommy looked up quickly, a flush overtaking his face. 

“Really?” 

“I would never deny overthrowin' a government.” 

Tommy jumped up in excitement. 

“Thank you, Technoblade! I may get to go home! I’ll get my Tubbo back!"

Techno smiled gently. 

“Oh, and Theseus?” He side-eyed his excited brother. 

His excitement immediately dropped. A frown forming. “For the absolute last time, Technoblade! My name isn’t The-” Techno cut him off before he could finish. 

“It’s nice to have you home.”

Tommy stilled, mouth closing. 

Home, huh.


	5. Rain

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> New Information

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tubbo POV!!!!! Wooooooo!!! This chapter was really fun to write. I love writing smp!Dream more than anything, he's such a fascinating character to portray. His character ended up having a lot of my own person smp!Dream headcanons in it, so if some of it seems out of place, that's why. I couldn't help myself, honestly. I know I said last chapter that it was the last of the fluff but I'm here to remind you about that.
> 
> EVERYTHING IN THIS CHAPTER ONWARDS WILL HAVE DEPICTIONS OF MANIPULATION, GRAPHIC GORE, CHARACTER DEATH, AND POSSIBLE DEREALIZATION SO PLEASE READ WITH CAUTION. This fic is coming to a close soon, and I hope that those of you who enjoy my work continue to support me on other projects (some of which won't be as angsty.) I'll stop rambling now, enjoy :)

“Hello, Tubbo.” 

Tubbo startled, yelping when he heard the unexpected voice from behind him. He turned to see Dream, leaned against the doorframe, his netherite armour gleamed. 

Tubbo cleared his throat and adjusted his lapels. “Hi, Dream.” He attempted a kind smile, but it just came off as forced. 

Dream smiled back, though his mouth was covered, his eyes crinkled in a way that should have been endearing, but instead was just threatening. 

“I’ve learned a few things that you may want to know.” He pushed himself off the doorframe and strode into the room. He looked around, hand brushing along the various photo frames on the walls. Scenes from after their Independence sat proudly in their glass, the faces of him, Tommy, and Wilbur looked back at him, smiles blinding. A photo of Tommy and Tubbo on the bench, the setting sun framing them. The Declaration. Dream’s hand came to rest on that particular photo frame. The fading sunlight coming in from the windows cast his face in a golden light. Tubbo shivered. 

“Have you heard anything from Tommy recently?” He asked. His attention left the frames on the wall and came to face Tubbo. The static smile of his mask that was covering the bottom half of his face was always so creepy. It made him hard to read, his eyes stone, never faltering to show any of his emotions. If Tubbo wore his heart on his sleeve, Dream didn’t even have one. 

“No, I haven’t talked to him at all since he left. He hasn’t been back if that’s what you’re asking.” Tubbo tried to say as confidently as he could, but his voice still wavered. He missed Tommy a lot, everything was slightly harder without his best friend at his side. No matter how annoying and difficult Tommy got, he was always there for Tubbo no matter what. 

Thunder cracked and the skies opened up, fat raindrops smacked against the window, drowning out the last of the late afternoon sunlight. Tubbo jumped again, and Dream chuckled. 

“Oh, don’t worry, Tubbo. I know he hasn’t been back. But he will be.” His voice was monotone, and it sent a chill down Tubbo’s spine. 

“What do you mean?” 

“I mean he’s with Technoblade, off in the country.” Dream made a vague hand gesture. Tubbo’s heart dropped. Is _that_ why Tommy had left? To find Technoblade of all people? The one that destroyed their nation, along with Wilbur. Tubbo knew that he was Tommy’s brother, but he seemed so adamant about hating him before, it didn’t make sense. 

“How do you know this?” Tubbo’s hands were shaking, but Dream was as emotionless as always. He made a noncommittal sound. 

“I have my ways.” He walked over to the window, finally breaking the uncomfortable eye contact he had kept with Tubbo this entire time. Tubbo let out a sigh of relief when he wasn’t under the piercing gaze of Dream and he slouched down into the desk chair. 

“I wouldn’t question the validity, though. I’m positive that’s where he is.” Fog had gathered on the inside of the glass, and Dream drew a smiley face in it, much like a child in a car. Tubbo’s brow furrowed. 

“Is this all you came to tell me? To rub the fact that Tommy left for Technoblade in my face?” He grit his teeth, he didn’t have the strength to backtalk Dream and get away with it, he needed to watch his tongue. Dream chuckled and continued to draw on the window, dragging his finger along the wet glass, making a lopsided version of what looked like George’s glasses. 

“No, that’s not all I came to do.” He drew an axe on the window. Tubbo swallowed. “They’ve teamed up.” He stepped away from the glass, condensation making the smiley face drip. Tubbo looked away. 

“What do you mean, they’ve teamed up?" 

Dream sat down on his own chair, leaning forward and resting his elbows on his knees. He pushed his hood back, the slowly growing moonlight mixed with the quickly fading sunlight made his hair reflect back a white-blonde. He rested his chin on his folded hands, making eye contact with Tubbo once more. His green eyes were bright, and if Tubbo didn’t know any better, he’d say they looked like Eyes of Ender. He found himself unable to look away, or even blink.

“They’re going to overthrow you, Tubbo. They are going to destroy L’manburg once and for all.” Lightning flashed and Tubbo’s throat closed. 

“What?” His voice was quiet, and it cracked. He didn’t care. “What do you mean, they wouldn’t do that. Tommy wouldn’t do that! He- “ He jumped up from his chair and paced the room. “He loves L’manburg. He loves _me_. Right?” He turned to Dream, who had leaned back and had his legs crossed. The man shrugged. 

“Maybe it was all fake?” He suggested, face once again completely blank. 

Tubbo stilled. “Maybe it was all fake.” He took a deep, shaky breath and walked back down to the chair.  
  
“It’s alright though,” Dream followed him with his eyes, making another gesture with his hands. Tubbo looked up. “I’ll help you.” 

“You’ll help me?”

“Yes. I’ll help you protect L’manburg.”  
  
Tubbo furrowed his brows and shook his head in confusion. “But why? I thought you didn’t respect L’manburg as a country.” 

Dream barks out a laugh. “Oh, yeah I don’t.” He splayed his hand out towards Tubbo. “But I want Tommy to get what he wants even less. They’re going to try and kill me, I can’t exactly just sit to the side and let them do that, now can I?” 

Tubbo didn’t know what to say. His mouth was dry. This was so much to take in, and having Dream here felt suffocating. He looked at Dream’s hand, obviously inviting a handshake. Tubbo shook his head quickly, and Dream pushed his hand forward a little more.  
  
“Oh, come on now, Tubbo. You can’t do this without me. L’manburg will be nothing but a memory come next week if you don’t take up this offer.” 

Tubbo screwed his eyes shut and shook his head again.  
  
“I don’t want to hurt Tommy. I can’t hurt Tommy.” 

Dream growled, patience running thin.

“Don’t you get it?” He stood up from his chair and went back to the window. It was illuminated only by the moon at this point, but his drippy smiley face from earlier was still clearly visible. Tubbo didn’t like it. He felt like it was watching him. 

“Tommy doesn’t _care_ about you! He doesn’t care about L’manburg! Tommy only cares,” He paused, scribbling to discs into the condensation. “About the discs. That’s all he’s ever cared about. You’re just too naive to see it.” He placed his hand on the window and wiped, the crudely drawn discs disappearing into a mess of dripping water. Dream shook his hand once, the droplets landing on Tubbo’s desk and catching the moonlight. 

“Tommy can’t get the discs, Tubbo. He knows that. He’s not your friend, he’s not my friend, he’s not Techno’s friend. He’s selfish.” He turned and looked at the boy in the chair. Tubbo’s face was white and he gripped the armrests of his chair. Dream’s eyes flashed then narrowed. Tubbo could tell he was smiling underneath the mask, but he didn’t even attempt to hide this one behind a friendly demeanor. His eyes were sharp and deadly, and the colors swirled. Tubbo felt dizzy. 

“You said so yourself, didn’t you?” Tubbo’s breath caught. Dream walked over to him again and held his hand out. 

“So.” Dream blinked slow, like a cat watching its prey. “Do you want my help? Or not.” 

Tubbo’s hand shook as he slowly raised it and gripped Dream’s much larger hand. The leather of his gloves was soft, and Tubbo’s hand was quickly engulfed by the cold. Dream’s grin grew impossibly wider as he shook Tubbo’s hand once, firmly. 

“Good choice, Tubbo. Good choice.”

As Dream let go of his hand, Tubbo looked over to the window a final time. He would've sworn the drippy smile was wider. 


	6. No

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It wasn't supposed to be like this.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi! If you saw the note from last night, I'm sorry if I caused any worry! I'm all good now, I had some family stuff happen but I ended up being able to finish this chapter! Listening to Waterfall from the Undertale OST isn't required, but it's suggested. 
> 
> WARNING FOR GRAPHIC VIOLENCE AND BLOOD
> 
> Enjoy :)

“Tommy. I cannot make potions if you do not leave me alone.” Techno looked up from the brewing stand to Tommy, who was sitting on the chest behind him. Tommy shrugged. 

“I’m just talking, Technoblade. You let Ghostbur talk to you whenever you’re doing stuff.” 

“Ghostbur isn’t loud and annoyin’.” He huffed and turned back to the brewing stand. “If you’re going to continue to antagonize me, will you please hand me some blaze powder? It’s in the chest you’re sittin’ on.” He gestured behind him without looking away. Tommy hopped off and opened the chest, rummaging around until he found the container. He handed it over to Techno, who hummed thanks and got back to work. Tommy sat back down on the chest. 

“So, what is our plan?” He asked, completely ignoring what Techno had said just moments prior. 

Techno sighed but answered anyway. “I’m gonna make us enough potions to last through a few fights, you’re gonna shut up and not get in the way, and then we’re gonna head to L’manburg.” Tommy nodded slowly. 

“What potions are you making? I assume regen, strength, and speed probably.” 

“Invis, fire res, and turtle master as well,” Techno grumbled as he carefully poured a ghast tear into the brewing stand.   
  
“Turtle master?” Techno hummed. “Don’t those give you crazy slowness?” Tommy asked in confusion, cocking his head to the side. 

“Mhm,” Techno added a pinch of Redstone powder, wiping his stained fingers on his pants. “But they also make you almost invincible. The resistance is worth it.” Tommy hummed, Techno knew more about potions than he did, so who was he to question him. It was quiet for a minute. The only sounds filling the room were the idle vwoops of Edward the enderman, the drip of the brewing potions, and their breathing. The air outside the house was still and cold, but the room was warm. Condensation gathered on the windows, dripping down in slow-moving drops. Tommy watched them slide down the glass and remembered when he used to pretend they were racing. He’d place his bets on a water droplet and root for it as it dripped down, either making it to the end or colliding to never win. 

Tommy felt a lot like one of those water droplets right now. It felt like he had no choice, he either had to win, or he would take his opponent down with him and they would both lose. 

Killing Dream wasn’t going to be easy, and he had barely gotten Technoblade to even agree to his plan the night before. It was risky, and he wasn’t even sure if it would work. For all he knew, Dream was literally unkillable, some kind of rogue god come down to taunt and torture his subjects. The thought filled him with a sense of dread, even if he didn’t want to admit it. Everything was riding on this, his discs, Tubbo, his life. 

The loud bubbling of the potions draining into their bottles made him jump, and Techno glanced over to him in confusion. He shook his head quickly and pulled his knees up to his chest. 

“You said you got these spare clothes from Phil.” Techno sighed when he realized the question was directed at him and not just Tommy talking aloud, but he nodded. 

“Yeah, I got them from Phil. They were Wilbur’s.” Tommy’s stomach soured at that. The idea of wearing his dead brother's clothes made him a little uncomfortable. Techno continued. “I figured you two were much closer in size than me or Phil would be. He didn’t mind gatherin’ up some of the old stuff he still had for me to come grab.” Tommy picked at a seam on his shirt. 

“You’ve seen him since I showed up?” His heart clenched. He was hoping his dad wouldn’t have even noticed that Tommy was gone, but he knew that was a stupid wish. He was too loud and active for no one to notice his absence. 

“Yeah. He knew that you were leavin’ before you even left the walls. Apparently, Tubbo came and woke him up as soon as you were out of view.” His brother shrugged. “He was glad you were with me.” 

Tommy nodded slowly, even though Techno wasn’t looking at him. Tubbo went and told Phil? Why? His departing words were so harsh that Tommy was half convinced Tubbo didn’t care. He knew that leaving hurt his best friend, but he was so cruel to Tommy in those final moments. Tubbo had always been a people pleaser, and it really caught Tommy off guard to see his friend so angry. 

He heard the clink of glass hitting glass and Techno’s grunt as he pushed himself up from the floor. His arms were full of potion bottles and he walked over to a chest he had placed earlier. 

Somehow, he managed to unlock and open it with a heeled foot and carefully placed each of the bottles inside. He muttered to himself as he did, quietly counting and confirming the potions and their amounts. He then turned over to Tommy. 

“How’s your armour doin’?” He poked a finger into Tommy's chest, the swirling enchants on the netherie bending away from the finger. Tommy ran his hands along all his armour, feeling for any big nicks in the material. It felt smooth and he nodded.   
  
“Looks and feels fine.” He gave a thumbs up. “It should hold up fine. My tools are also doing fine, no issues there.” 

Techno sighed in relief. 

“Good, I really am not in the mood to try and fix all your stuff at the moment.” He cracked his knuckles and opened the double chest against the wall. After rummaging around for a second, Tommy just watching from behind, he came back up with a handful of ender pearls and two golden apples, holding one by the stem in his teeth. He pushed his hand forward to Tommy, making a gesture with his head. Tommy took the hint and held his hands out, and his brother dropped the pearls into them. He then grabbed the apple that was between his teeth and held it out as well. 

“Here. put these where you can grab them quick.” He put his own golden apple into a small bag strapped to his leg, along with going back in the chest and grabbing a few more pearls. Tommy quickly followed suit, putting his pearls away in an easy to grab place in his gear. He nodded once, sharply, and gestured to the chest he just filled with potions. “Grab what you need and get ready. We’re leaving as soon as the sun sets.”

* * *

The sun had barely risen and yet L’manburg was teeming with activity. Everyone from the Greater SMP area had gathered to help prep for the coming battle. Tubbo sat inside, away from the ruckus. He had his head in his hands and he took a deep breath. Soon, he would have to fight against his best friend to protect the country. Dream had told him that no harm would come to Tommy as long as he cooperated, but Tubbo was worried.

He heard a knock on the door and slowly looked up.

Dream was standing in the frame, still fully armoured. 

“Tubbo.” He nodded. Tubbo took another deep breath. 

“Hi, Dream. How’s prep going?” He tried to sound like he wasn’t worried, but the higher the sun rose the more his anxiety rose. 

Dream shrugged. “Oh, it’s going.” He adjusted his shirt sleeves. “But that’s not what I’m here to talk about.” Dream walked over and splayed himself out in one of the chairs in front of Tubbo’s desk. He propped his legs up on the desk, toeing over a lamp. 

“I’m here to talk about Tommy.” He said, voice grating Tubbo’s brain. Dream rested his chin on his folded hands and turned his head towards Tubbo. His eyes reflected the sunlight and glimmered, greens and blues becoming brighter. Tubbo took a shuddering breath and looked up at the man in front of him. He nodded once. 

“Alright, let’s talk about Tommy.” He could tell Dream was grinning from behind his covered mouth, and he didn’t need to see to know that it was full of malice. 

* * *

Snow fell as Tommy and Technoblade made their way to his portal. He was heavy with supplies, potion bottles made twangs as the glass of them tapped against one another, his armour clanged where it collided when he bent his knees. The snowflakes collected on his eyelashes and frigid water dripped into his eyes when he blinked. Looking up, he saw that the snow dusted Techno’s hair as well, the light pink braid accented with spots of white. 

“Why are you starin’ at me?” Techno looked over, nose tinted pink from the snow. 

Tommy looked at his feet. “Just nervous, I guess.” 

“Don’t be. We’re overprepared, everythin’ will be fine.” Techno clapped him on the shoulder, causing the light covering of powder white snow that had settled along his body to fall from his shoulder in a small cloud. 

Tommy nodded, and more snowflakes gathered on his eyelashes. His breath came out in huffs as he dragged his feet through the snow. Techno removed his hand and pointed. 

“There’s the portal. Pick up the pace, let’s go.” His strides grew longer and Tommy had to rush to keep up. It wasn’t far off, maybe about a minute walk after they spotted it, and the warmth and light it gave off were enough to melt the snow surrounding it. Techno looked over.   
  
“Double-check your supplies. We won’t have much time after we walk through the SMP portal. Be ready for an ambush.” He cracked his knuckles again and looked down at his body, counting the potions and making sure his armour was secure. He drew his sword, tying his shield around his hand. “Ready?” 

Tommy scrambled to count his own potions, making sure all his weapons and tools were at easy reach. He nodded once and they stepped into the portal. 

The purple light swirled in his eyes, distorting everything before going black. Suddenly there was warmth and light, and they were in the Nether. The heat was a drastic change from the snow on the other side, and Tommy could feel the snow that had lingered in his hair and on his clothes melt almost instantly, sending a chill down his spine. He stepped out of the portal, Technoblade following, and took a moment to get reoriented after the trip. It would take them around 5 minutes to walk to the SMP portal, and then all hell would break loose. They started walking, Techno barking an order for Tommy to stay behind him no matter what. 

He thought about Tubbo again. What was happening over in L’maburg? Did they know he was coming? Had they somehow found out and were waiting on the other side of the portal, ready to kill them without so much as a potion drank? The Nether bridge was narrow, made of a mix of cobble and obsidian. It was warm under his feet, and the heat was both comforting and terrifying. His fingers stayed gripping the bottle of Fire Resistance in case he somehow fell. Techno was silent, but his ears were pointed toward him, listening. He took a deep breath. 

This battle was make or break. They would either kill Dream or die trying, and Tommy was well aware. 

His thoughts stayed on Tubbo until they arrived at the portal, the Blackstone platform and walls were unwelcoming. Techno nodded at him, then pulled out the cork on his Invisibility potion, downing it in one swallow. He started to fade and soon was nothing but floating armour. Tommy quickly followed. 

“Ready?” Techno asked. It was weird to hear his voice from beside him when he wasn’t able to see his brother. Tommy nodded, then realized he wasn’t visible. 

“I’m ready.” He confirmed. He felt a hand land on his shoulder, and the two brothers walked into the portal once more. 

The purple swirl wasn’t nearly as overwhelming on his senses, having just gone through it moments prior, and before he knew it, he could see the scenery of the Greater SMP area burst to life around him. The community house sat proudly in the center, and Tommy’s anxiety grew. 

They saw no one around, not even an echo of life in the area, and Technoblade grunted. 

“Huh, weird.” He moved forward. “Let’s go.” 

He readied his sword in his hand and walked down the steps. Tommy followed closely, his own sword positioned to fight. 

The path was empty, but the closer they got to L’manburg the less barren everything seemed. They walked along, nerves strung high, passing Tommy’s original SMP home, still granite from Puffy’s prank months ago, passing Ninja’s build, everything. Reaching the end of the path, stairs leading down into L’manburg, Tommy’s stomach dropped. 

Everyone in the Greater SMP and L’manburg was all there, everyone standing with weapons ready. Axes held securely in hands, swords pointed outwards and bowed nocked with arrows. 

“Technoblade?” His voice shook, but he dared not take his eyes off the scene in front of him. 

“Tommy,” His brother spoke. “When I say go, we attack.” 

Tommy risked looking away to whip his head over to Techno. 

“Attack?!” He whisper-shouted, incredulous. “Technoblade every single person in the nation is here right now. We can’t win this.” He looked back over to the dozens of people standing, waiting. Techno scoffed. 

“Yes, we can.” He looked over the people. “Go, Tommy.” 

Tommy hesitated. Techno swung his head around. 

“Now, Tommy! Go!” He shouted, taking off at a run down the steps. 

Tommy’s eyes flew open and he braced himself, following after Technoblade into the arms of the enemy. 

He heard the clang of swords before he even touched the ground. He threw his shield up only to feel an arrow stab into it. The impact sent him stumbling back, but he quickly righted himself and swung his sword out in front of him. It made contact, and Tommy felt the sharp blade sink into something soft. A strangled yell came from the person and he quickly yanked his sword back. An arrow whizzed past his ear and he heard it hit true into someone’s shield. There were people surrounding him from all angles, and he looked around frantically. Neither Dream nor Tubbo were visible in the crowd. 

Something heavy smashed into his shield, and he looked up to see Purpled, axe buried into the wood and iron. He threw a crazed grin at Tommy before yanking the axe away, leaving his shield splintered. His arm burned from the impact and he had to drop the shield to his side. He lunged forward with his sword, the edge just barely catching the teen's shoulder. It sliced shallow, splitting a tear into the purple hoodie. It was caught by netherite armour as Purpled stumbled back. Tommy grimaced. Blood leaked from the boy's new wound and his nose scrunched in discomfort. Before Tommy could react any more, he felt the presence of another person to his left. Punz swung his own sword at Tommy, but he suddenly lurched to the side. The tip of his sword nicked Tommy’s chest plate, and he looked over at the man to see that Techno had thrown his axe at him. It hit true in his leg and had sliced a deep chunk from his flesh. Punz shouted in pain and kicked the axe away the best he could. He stumbled but managed to stay standing. The wound bled heavily, and Punz snarled. Tommy quickly pulled his shield back up. 

“You won’t get Dream, Tommy.” His face was pale, the blood loss affecting him quickly. Tommy stepped back and felt his boots slide on the blood slick grass. He opened his mouth to respond, but Punz wasn’t finished. “You won’t get anything you want. You’re a greedy child, and your greed will catch up with you one day.” 

He stumbled heavily, his leg giving out under him. Tommy turned away, he had more important things to worry about. Techno was holding off the masses, his face and clothes spattered with blood. The grass was thickly coated, almost unrecognizable as green. Techno stepped back, grin covering his face. Tommy ran forward, sword ready, and ducked into the fray. He swung his sword wildly, catching anyone who got too close. He wanted to find Dream. All he needed to do was find Dream. Another arrow was shot by him, catching him in the arm. He flinched and turned quickly, just to see Fundy nock another arrow.   
  
Tommy’s eyebrows furrowed. Fundy? He didn’t have time to think, the arrow went flying and he barely managed to throw his shield up. He charged forward, sword ready. Fundy ducked away and quickly pulled his sword out. He swung himself under Tommy’s arm, managing to slice into his side. Tommy yelped out in pain, feeling the warmth of his blood seep out of the wound. He spun to retaliate, but Fundy was gone. He looked around frantically, catching a glimpse of Bad leaning over where Punz had collapsed. Techno was fighting Quackity, and he almost went to join, when Techno smashed forward with his shield, knocking Quackity back. He stumbled and fell back, and his sword clattered from his hand. Techno kicked it hard and sent it spinning into a nearby pond. 

Techno turned to him, jerking his head back. Tommy followed the gesture, looking up to see Tubbo’s Whitehouse. At first, he was confused as to why Techno would make him look up there before he realized Dream. He was standing on the steps, watching over the wreckage with a cocked head, like a curious dog. 

Tommy saw red. Dream was free of any armour or weapons. He was just standing there watching. He felt someone come up beside him, felt the woosh of air as they drew their sword. He swung his own sword out, feeling it make an impact with whoever was there. They choked, but Tommy couldn’t find it in him to care. He yanked his sword back and pushed through the crowd, clearing the way with the sharp end of his blade. 

Tommy made it to the bottom of the steps. Dream looked down on him, and Tommy felt his anger rise. He dropped his shield and sheathed his sword. His hands were shaking, but he pulled the crossbow off his back, already prepped with a sharp arrow, the kind Technoblade kept for special occasions. He stepped forward slowly until he was only steps away from Dream. He was hyper-focused on the man in front of him, and his rage grew. Dream didn’t even have the decency to look nervous, his face showed no emotion. 

Tommy grit his teeth and raised the crossbow. He took a deep breath and started counting down in his head. All the sounds dulled, his senses all on Dream. 

One. He counted in his head. He lined up the tip of his arrow with Dream’s chest. 

Two. He breathed in again, his eyes falling closed. He bit his tongue in his mouth. 

Three. He pushed the trigger. 

“Tommy, no!” His eyes flew open, but it was too late. Tubbo came running in front of Dream and the arrow sunk deep into his chest. His eyes widened and he pawed at his chest. Blood dribbled from his mouth. Tommy’s hands went cold, and Tubbo collapsed.


	7. Selfish

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Maybe he was selfish.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is it! The final chapter of Welcome Home, Theseus. It's been so long since I started this fic, many arcs have happened. I planned this chapter before anything else, and I've been so excited to get it out here. I'm happy with how this fic has wrapped up, and I hope this chapter doesn't disappoint. 
> 
> WARNINGS FOR DEPICTIONS OF DEATH AND BLOOD!! READ WITH CAUTION!!!!

He couldn’t feel his hands. His feet were numb. He was on the ground. Why was he on the ground? His head was blurry, but he could faintly hear sounds from behind him. 

Tommy’s knees felt wet, he looked down to see the ground slowly turning red on the white steps. His stomach dropped more if that was even possible. Tubbo. His hands were shaking he thought, but that could have just been the tears gathering in his eyes. Tubbo’s eyes were panicked, darting around so fast Tommy couldn’t keep up. He was still clawing at his chest, blood forming a steady stream from the corner of his mouth. 

He looked up, Dream was still standing above him, face completely blank. His shirt was spattered with blood, and the still rising sun haloed him. He cocked his head again. 

“Well, that’s an issue.” He muttered, bringing a hand up to place under his chin. Tommy choked back a sob and looked back down at his best friend. 

“Tubbo?” His voice broke, tears streamed down his face, hot and heavy. Tubbo’s eyes slowly drifted over to his face. He blinked slowly. 

“You might want to deal with that.” Dream toed Tubbo’s shoulder, jostling him slightly. 

Tommy looked around frantically. He needed to get Tubbo somewhere private, somewhere he could try and help him. He racked his brain thinking of somewhere. He remembered Pogtopia, and as much as he didn’t want to go back there, it was the safest place. 

“Hello, Dream.” Came a deep voice from above him. He guarded Tubbo’s body with his arms and looked up to see Technoblade. He looked down at the two, nodded, and stepped over them to be face to face with Dream. 

Dream’s eyes narrowed, clearly smiling, and he held his arms out wide.    
  
“Technoblade! It has been a long time.” 

Tommy took this as his cue. He carefully pulled Tubbo up into his arms, careful to avoid the arrow in his chest. He hadn’t loaded his arrow properly, and it didn’t hit with full force. He knew that was the only reason Tubbo was still breathing right now. He had a chance to save him. 

Tubbo made a pained sound and weakly gripped what he could grab of Tommy’s shirt in his fist. Dream was distracted, but he didn’t know for how long. They had to leave. Tommy shushed Tubbo softly. 

“I’ll help you, Tubbo. Everything is going to be okay.” He whispered as he took off from the Whitehouse steps in as much of a run he could manage. The impact of every step sent a jolt through his body, his side burned in agony where Fundy had sliced him earlier. He needed to get to Pogtopia fast, the sooner he could lay Tubbo down the less pain he could be in. He remembered the route, it was harder to navigate with Tubbo in his arms, and tears in his eyes, but he didn’t have the ability to slow down. Tubbo’s grip on his shirt was slipping, his eyes falling closed more frequently. His head lolled back and he was practically dead weight in Tommy’s arms. 

“Tubbo?” He looked down at his friend. Tubbo’s eyes opened ever so slightly and his gaze drifted to Tommy’s eyes painfully slow. “Tubbo you can’t fall asleep, okay big man?” His voice cracked under the weight of his hidden tears. He couldn’t cry now. “Stay awake Tubs, we’re so close. I’m gonna help you.” 

Tubbo didn’t respond, just smiled lightly. It wasn’t a normal Tubbo smile. Tommy took a shaky breath and pushed his tears back. He was almost there. He could see the mound where the entrance was, and he almost let the tears fall. Everything was going to be okay. He stumbled as he ran down a hill, and heard Tubbo wince. He almost stopped to check on him but managed to keep going. The water was cold as it soaked through his boots when he waded across the small lake. 

He made it to the entrance, and Tommy prayed the dirt wall was still fragile enough to just kick down. He held Tubbo closer to his chest and kicked out. The wall crumbled, exposing the inside of the room. The torches were all burnt out, and spiderwebs littered every surface. He prayed the lanterns in the inner ravine were strong enough to still be burning, he couldn’t handle the threat of mobs right now. 

“We’re here, Tubbo. Everything is going to be okay.” He whispered, mainly to himself. He stumbled down the stairs, regretting the decision to remove the safety rails, and nearly fell onto the floor when he reached the bottom. He looked around for the chest that he and Wilbur kept all their blankets in. 

He spotted it, sitting in a corner, covered in dust. He kicked it open, not caring about the dust flying through the air, and pulled out as many as he could carry. Dropping them on the floor, he carefully laid Tubbo on top of them, making sure his head didn’t hit the stone. Tommy dropped down to his knees next to him and placed his hands over the arrow in his chest. There was no way he could remove it, it was a barbed arrow. It would cause an endless amount of damage if he tried. 

“Tommy.” Tubbo managed to speak through cracked lips. His voice was rough, and it sounded like it hurt him to breathe. Tommy immediately ripped his eyes up to meet Tubbo’s. 

“Shhh, it’s okay Tubs. I’m gonna find a way to help you. I need quills, anything I can use to get this arrow out, bandages, anything-” Tubbo cut off his rambling. 

“Why would you do this?” He asked. It was soft, quiet, but it broke into Tommy’s thoughts like a razor-sharp blade. 

“Tubbo, I-” Tommy couldn’t get the words out, they snagged in his throat. He tried to force them out, but it felt like thorns ripping at his throat. His eyes welled up with tears again, and he didn’t have the energy to keep them in this time. 

Tubbo struggled to reach a hand up and placed it on Tommy’s cheek. Tommy rushed to lay his own hand on top of his friends, hoping to take some of the strain off. 

Tubbo smiled, mournfully. The blood leaking from his mouth had started to dry, and it cracked at the sides of his mouth with the action. His eyes were unfocused, and the breath he took in was shaky and gurgled. Tommy flinched at the sound. 

Tubbo’s eyes fluttered shut, and his hand started to slip from Tommy’s face, but his friend held on.    
  
“You were always so-” He choked, a deep and painful cough. Fresh blood bubbled from his lips, and his eyebrows furrowed in pain.

“You were always so selfish.” He stuttered out. He took one more breath, let it out, and his chest stilled. Tommy frantically clung to him, feeling for a pulse, but Tubbo was still in every way. The blood stopped flowing, and Tommy hugged his friend. He was covered in blood at this point, both his own, and others. 

Sobs wracked his body, every breath he took hurt like hell. He didn’t feel deserving of the air in his lungs. He stripped off his armour, throwing it aggressively to the side like it had personally caused this. Gently, he pulled Tubbo’s head into his lap, his hand resting on the cold cheek of his best friend. He brushed the sweat-dampened hair from his face and held him close. 

Tommy heard footsteps, but he didn’t look up. He didn’t care anymore. The footsteps stopped, and Tommy could hear the intake of breath. 

“Well, if it isn’t the blood-soaked hero.” It was Dream. His voice was as strong and cocky as ever. Tommy forced himself to look away from Tubbo. He stood silhouetted against the light. 

“Where’s Technoblade?” That was all Tommy said. He didn’t acknowledge the man in any other way. Dream shrugged and gestured his head back toward the stairs. 

“He’ll be here eventually. I’m not going to kill you, Tommy. “ He looked down at him. “Though I do have a question.” 

Tommy drew his eyes up, meeting them with Dream’s. Unspoken words sparked between them, anger and sorrow filled the space, but no one said a word. 

“Go on.” Came Tommy’s reply. 

“Was it worth it? Did you get what you wanted?” And with that, Dream turned on his heel and walked up the stairs, not even waiting for a reply from Tommy. The words hit him hard, and his brain ran a million miles a minute. Of course this wasn’t what he wanted, was it? It wasn’t worth it. He lost Tubbo. 

His tears never slowed, but the minutes ticked by. He was waiting for Technoblade. The blood on his hands and clothes became sticky, and Tubbo’s body grew colder and colder in his arms. He reached over and grabbed one of the bloody blankets from the ground and wrapped it around them both. 

“I’m so sorry, Tubbo.” He whispered. “I didn’t want this to happen. I just wanted to help you, but instead, I did the opposite. I never wanted you to get hurt, I just wish we realized everything before he ripped us apart. Now we’ll never get the chance to be together again. How can it be us against the world if you’re not here.” His tears fell hot and heavy, splashing down on the hands he kept on Tubbo’s face. 

He heard more footsteps, and this time he did look up. 

Technoblade walked down the stairs, a slight limp in his step, and his hair bloody and toustled, but he seemed fine. Tommy knew he healed quickly. 

“I was too late to save him, Techno.” Tommy choked out through his sobs. Techno came over and kneeled next to the pair. “I killed him. I killed my best friend.” 

Techno’s eyes were soft, but he didn’t speak. Tommy probably wouldn’t have heard him through his tears and thoughts anyway. He lunged forward and grabbed the front of Techno’s cape. His face was red and puffy from the tears, his eyes bloodshot and crazed. 

“Kill me, Technoblade. I can’t be in this place without him. I can’t do it.” He was hysterical, gripping at Techno’s clothes, leaving bloody marks across the fur. “Please, Techno. I have nothing left to live for.” He barely got the words out. His sobbing completely choked his words. He collapsed forward, still clinging tightly to Tubbo. 

Techno stood in one fluid motion and pulled out his sword. He looked at Tommy, losing himself to his grief, and thought of Wilbur. Wilbur begging their father to kill him, nothing left to lose. He took a breath, lined up the sword with the back of Tommy’s neck, and spoke. 

“I’m sorry, Theseus.” He paused. Tommy’s crying had calmed, but his grip on Tubbo had only gotten tighter. He stayed hunched over and seemed calm. Techno closed his eyes and continued. “But heroes never get happy endings.” 

He plunged the sword forward, and Tommy was still. He didn’t make a noise, didn’t move. He simply smiled.

Maybe he was selfish. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope everyone enjoyed. I know it was sad, and I want to say I'm sorry, but I'm really not. Keep an eye out for more stuff from me!

**Author's Note:**

> Not to beg, but if you could leave a kudos and maybe a comment it literally makes my day! I respond to every comment you guys leave <3  
> I hope you liked the chapter! See you next time :)
> 
> Follow me on [Twitter !](https://twitter.com/catmaidschlatt) I'll be posting more about my current projects there ! DMs are always open for requests !


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